The heartlessness of two unknown criminals caused them to force two friends into a flooding river after robbing them of their money at gunpoint on 17 December.
It is alleged that the suspects confronted the victims, Mr Desmond Fantini (28) and Tebogo Ngonyama (19), when they were on their way home and robbed them of R310 in cash. The incident took place at Maswanganyi village,
According to information provided by the Limpopo police's media centre, the two victims were then escorted at gunpoint towards the flooding Ritavi river and forced to cross. Fantini managed to swim across the river while Ngonyama allegedly got swepted away.
The police was notified and, assisted by community members, then launched a massive search for the victim who could not cross the river. The search comprised the search-and-rescue unit and divers from Thohoyandou, the K9 squad, the local police and community members.
The police quickly issued a public statement where they appealed to communities in the area to refrain from taking the law into their own hands following the incident. Meanwhile, the search-and-rescue unit and divers managed to recover the body of Maswanganyi in the river on 18 December.
"We appeal to members of the community to assist us with information which could lead to the identification and arrest of the two suspects who are still at large," Brig Mojapelo said. "We urge residents to assist in tracking down these merciless criminals."